Oxfam reaction to DfID aid to India announcement

In response to International Development Secretary Justine Greening's announcement today on aid to India, Oxfam's Director of Campaigns & Policy, Phil Bloomer, said:

"We're concerned that completely withdrawing British aid to India by 2015 is too hasty. It's crucial that we don't cut off money which gives a lifeline to poor families, and a third of the world's poorest people live in India."

"Today's announcement puts the onus on both the UK and Indian governments to demonstrate how any changes to aid, and future development co-operation, puts the poorest people first. Despite the fact India is a country of growing wealth it is also a hugely divided country with extreme levels of poverty and inequality. The scale of the challenge remains huge, as 250 million Indian citizens go to bed hungry tonight."
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For more information, or to arrange an interview with an Oxfam spokesperson, please contact: Sarah Dransfield in the Oxfam press office, on: 01865 472269, 07767 085636 or email: sdransfield@oxfam.org.uk

Notes to editors:

The average income per head in India is less than £2500 a year, a tenth of the figure for Britain